APRU Global Sustainability: Waste & The City Seminar Course Helps Graduate Students Shape Green Leadership Concepts
APRU successfully concluded its APRU Global Sustainability: Waste & The City seminar course, providing APRU graduate students an opportunity to gain insights how industry and academic leaders from around the world work with key stakeholders in implementing sustainability in their organizations.
Delivered via videoconferencing in February-May in a seminar-lecture/ student peer-to-peer session mix, the course investigated a range of topics related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG), Environmental, Social, Corporate Governance (ESG), the linear/circular economy, and urban development.
The course was a collaboration between Nanyang Technological University Singapore; the APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscapes Program (led by University of Oregon); and the APRU Sustainable Waste Management Program (led by Korea University). Its format has been closely aligned with the APRU Global Health Distance Education Courses that have been running very successfully for over five years.
“As shared in the class, we know that more people want businesses to take concrete actions to address climate change, with the rise of eco-awakening starting to push leaders and organizations to move rapidly toward environmentally sustainable business outcomes,” said Amit Midha, Dell Technologies’s President Asia Pacific, one of the industry expert speakers participating in the course.
“Indeed, sustainability and the impact it must have for generations to come is a topic I get often asked about by my children,” he added.
Other industry expert speakers were Kirsty Salmon, Vice President Advanced Bio and Physical Sciences for Low Carbon Energy at BP; Clint Navales, P&G’s VP Communications Asia Pacific; and Seung Jin Kim, Project Sourcing and Development Lead of Alliance to End Plastic Waste.
“It will take a multi-stakeholder approach to address global challenges such as the circular economy,” said Salmon. She shared that “bp’s ambition is to become a net zero energy company by 2050 or sooner, and to help the world to do the same. This can only happen by working with current and future stakeholders, suppliers, consumers and policy-makers to make this happen”.
Subject experts from within APRU included David Wardle, NTU Professor and Co-Chair APRU Sustainable Waste Management; Yekang Ko, University of Oregon Professor and Director of the APRU Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Program; and Yong Sik OK, Korea University Professor and Director of the APRU Sustainable Waste Management Program.
Student feedback about the course was very good specifically highlighting the valuable learning experience it offers participants.
Academic lead for the development and implementation of the course was provided by Sierin Lim, Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Global Partnerships at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
Lim stressed the importance of students across all disciplines gaining green knowledge through active discussions as part of their studies.
“Our course aims to equip students with not only the knowledge on sustainability but also the thinking process and implementation in the industry. Offering this course within an international platform such as that on the APRU provides the students with the opportunity to hone their analytical and intercultural communication skills. We are looking forward to develop the course together with our partner universities for the next cohort to bring in new perspectives on sustainability,” Lim said.
Contact the APRU Program Team ([email protected]) if you are interested to bring your students to the next iteration of the course.
May 20, 2022
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APRU on SJTU News: Shanghai Jiao Tong University Successfully Held the "Resilient Urban Landscape – APRU SCL Webinar & Landscape Architects’Forum"
Original post on SJTU News
On April 8, 2022, the “Resilient Urban Landscape – APRU SCL Webinar & Landscape Architects’Forum” jointly organized by Shanghai Jiaotong University, the Alliance of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU), and the Shanghai Landscape Architecture Society was successfully held online. The event is held in celebration of the 126th anniversary of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, as well as a member of APRU. It is intended to align with universities, professional associations and practices to call for global attention to environmental issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss may bring significant influences on urban ecological civilization, and suggests to seek innovative solutions with international perspective and local characteristics through international cooperation and communication.
The webinar was broadcasted simultaneously on the School of Design official Bilibili account, attracting approximately thousand viewers during peak hours. The event was chaired by Ruan Xing, Dean of the School of Design, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Bart Johnson, Professor of the University of Oregon, James Hayter, the president of International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA), Professor of the University of Adelaide, and Che Shengquan, Professor and Deputy Dean of the School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University delivered academic lectures with a Q&A session afterwards.
Luo Peng, Professor, Director of the International Affair Division of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, delieverd an opening speech. He mentioned that after Shanghai Jiaotong University officially joined the APRU in 2019, we participated in various international events and activities, as well as promoting students’ global engagement during covid and other scientific cooperations.
Jackie Agnello Wong, director of APRU network and student programs, introduced the background of APRU. It is composed of 61 outstanding academic institutions in the North America, Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. It has a history of nearly 25 years and aims to bring together experts from multiple backgrounds such as leaders, researchers, and policy makers to efficiently solve the problems faced by sustainable development in the 21st century. Her further expressed their heartfelt thanks to Shanghai Jiao Tong University for actively organizing this activity on the theme of resilient urban landscape.
Professor Bart Johnson focuses on “Creating and Maintaining Climate Resilient Cities”, calling for active response to the climate crisis to predict future changes and take action before it occurs, explores various strategies to adapt cities to rapid climate change within the framework.With the title of “At the Frontline of Change – 17 Ways Landscape Architects are Contributing Towards Landscape Resilience”, Professor James Hayter proposed 17 corresponding approaches to resilient landscape design, corresponding to the 17 goals of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and encouraged everyone use the power of design to participate in the contribution of urban resilient landscape. Professor Che Shengquan introduced the framework of sponge city theory and practice through the cases Shanghai Jiao Tong University was involved. The current situation of urban stormwater management in China proposed a stormwater management plan and formed a technical system. At the same time, it was demonstrated and promoted in some cities in China.
At the end of the webinar, Zhu Xiangming, President of the Shanghai Landscape Architecture Society, delivered a concluding speech. He believes that many cities in China and the world are facing the challenge of how to deal with the various environmental problems mentioned in today’s lectures. This seminar discussed how landscape architecture planning and design can deal with important issues such as climate change, sustainable development and ecological design, and called on professionals to work towards urban environmental issues, In the future, the society will also strengthen cooperation with universities, jointly promote the integration of production, education and research in design disciplines, provide more high-quality professional resources, and jointly contribute a more resilient and attractive global city of Shanghai.
April 19, 2022
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APRU on Bloomberg: APRU Launches The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim
Original post on Bloomberg
APRU (the Association of Pacific Rim Universities) is proud to announce the launch of The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim. The publication is the result of a multi-year collaboration of scholars through the APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program activities and engagement within its global network.
The handbook addresses a growing list of challenges faced by regions and cities in the Pacific Rim that are fundamental to sustainable development policies and planning practices. These include the connection between cities and surrounding landscapes, the persistence of environmental and development inequities, and the growing impacts of global climate change. This handbook emphasizes the importance of place-based approaches and collaborative, context-specific policies that are specific to the areas where they are being implemented.
The publication features a wealth of case studies from the Pacific Rim, enabling a comparative lens and a comprehensive scope to examine innovative policy capacity. The rich cases from the Asia Pacific region support cities in overcoming their need for research and evidence-based actions as highlighted in another report: “The Future of Asian & Pacific Cities published by UN ESCAP and UN-Habitat.”
Contributions to the book were made by 128 scholars based in the USA, Philippines, New Zealand, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan, China, South Korea, Israel, Hong Kong, Canada, Thailand, Belgium, Indonesia, India, and Singapore.
“This handbook is very much needed, given that much of the scholarly output on sustainable development to date has been developed in Europe and focuses on settings external to the fastest growing areas of the world, such as the coastal regions of the Asia Pacific,” said Dr. Christopher Tremewan, Secretary General of APRU.
“This book appeals to scholars, researchers, and students in such disciplines or fields as landscape architecture, architecture, planning, public policy, law, urban studies, geography, environmental science, and area studies,” he added.
The APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program was established in 2016, hosted by the University of Oregon, and supported by academic experts from 17 APRU member universities. This strong interconnection allows the SCL to draw on the strengths of differences across the region, using different viewpoints to solve urban and sustainability challenges that transcend city and country boundaries in the Pacific Rim.
The development of the handbook’s content was supported by the annual SCL conferences in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The SCL Sydney conference in 2019 introduced and foregrounded the significant role of indigenous communities in elevating multi-generational and deeply place-based knowledge and working to increase advocacy and representation among historically marginalized stakeholders.
Edited by Yizhao Yang of the University of Oregon, and Anne Taufen of the University of Washington, the handbook targets policymakers and public professionals who require a focused, yet complex understanding of the issues involved in climate action; elected leaders and local officials who are often striving to make connections among the relevant issues and identify opportunities for strategic collaboration; and regional stakeholders who want to see their challenges and successes represented in the studies and analysis that help inform policy decisions.
The handbook offers rich teaching materials for classes focusing on sustainable cities and landscapes in fields of urban planning, landscape architecture, and public administration.
It bridges academic and policy communities by illustrating the potential for professional development that is scientifically based, integrated across disciplines, and practical for implementation.
“The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is a significant reference volume appealing to readers across the academic and practitioner spectrum. We are delighted to have collaborated with APRU on the publication of this important project,” said Grace Harrison, Routledge Editor for Environment, Sustainability & Product Design.
“The book’s editors and section editors have meticulously curated contributions from an international range of researchers investigating key issues facing regions and cities in the Pacific Rim,” she added.
The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is available for pre-order and will ship after March 9, 2022.
April 11, 2022
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APRU on AAAS EurekAlert!: Sustainability in Times of COVID-19: Converting Face Masks into Valuable Fuel
Original AAAS Eurekalert!
Surgical masks are being used in virtually all countries of the world as the first line of defense against COVID-19. Shortly after the pandemic started, the demand for disposable masks skyrocketed to unprecedented levels; by June 2020, China alone was producing about 200 million masks per day! But the enormous amount of bulk waste constituted by these masks—coupled with staff shortages in waste management systems due to the pandemic—greatly exacerbated the threat that these plastic products pose to both human health and the environment.
Can discarded masks be turned into something useful to keep them away from incinerators, landfill, and our soils and oceans? The answer is a definite yes, as demonstrated by a team of researchers in a recent study published in Bioresource Technology (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126582), who analyzed the possibility of converting surgical masks into value-added chemicals through a thermal decomposition process called ‘pyrolysis.’ This international team of scientists was led by Professor Yong Sik Ok and Dr. Xiangzhou Yuan of Korea University, South Korea, who received great support from Professor Xun Hu of the University of Jinan and Professor Xiaonan Wang of the National University of Singapore and Tsinghua University.
While the pyrolysis of polypropylene—the main component of surgical masks—has already been studied in detail, masks usually contain other fillers that could affect their pyrolysis behavior. Thus, the research team had to carefully analyze how the pyrolysis conditions affected the obtained products, which came in gaseous, liquid, and solid forms. To this end, they ran multiple experiments at different pyrolysis temperatures and with different heating rates, capturing all the outputs and subjecting them to thorough characterization.
In particular, one set of pyrolysis conditions yielded a carbon-rich and oxygen-deficient liquid oil as the main product. Further analyses revealed that this oil had a high heating value of 43.5 MJ/kg, which is only slightly lower than that of diesel fuel and gasoline. In other words, the results showed that surgical masks can be converted into a burnable fuel that can in turn be used, for example, to generate electricity.
The story does not end there, however, being able to convert waste into something useful doesn’t necessarily make it a good idea. It is important to first assess the combined environmental impact of all the processes involved and compare it with that of current practices before thinking of implementing them. Therefore, the researchers conducted a life-cycle assessment (LCA) of their proposed methodology to better understand its pros and cons. The LCA is an approach that is widely to quantify the environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of a product; in this case, the discarded masks marked the beginning of the cycle while the electricity generated using the obtained fuel marked its end.
The results of the LCA were promising, indicating that the conversion of waste masks into electricity through pyrolysis offered better performance than most conventional waste management approaches on several fronts, including less CO2 emissions, less terrestrial ecotoxicity, and less phosphorous emissions. “We verified that upcycling post-consumer surgical masks into value-added energy products represents a sustainable and promising route with notable environmental benefits,” highlights Dr. Yuan.
Overall, the findings of this study indicate that pyrolysis is an attractive option to solve the problems posed by discarded surgical waste masks, paving the way to sustainable waste management, while generating energy and reducing our environmental impact. “Understanding new ways to turn surgical masks into value-added energy products will help us mitigate plastic pollution and achieve sustainable waste-to-energy conversion in the future,” concludes Prof. Ok, “The novel upcycling route proposed in our study could help us protect Earth’s ecosystems and reach several of the United Nation’s sustainable development goals.”
Let us hope this idea is further tested and ultimately implemented so that we can reduce our burden on the environment.
March 8, 2022
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APRU on AP, AFP, Yahoo! Finance, Morningstar, BusinessWire, NBC & FOX channels, NHA & 200+ pieces of coverage: APRU launches The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim
APRU (the Association of Pacific Rim Universities) is proud to announce the launch of The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim. The publication is the result of a multi-year collaboration of scholars through the APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program’s activities and engagement within its global network.
The handbook addresses a growing list of challenges faced by regions and cities in the Pacific Rim that are fundamental to sustainable development policies and planning practices. These include the connection between cities and surrounding landscapes, the persistence of environmental and development inequities, and the growing impacts of global climate change. This handbook emphasizes the importance of place-based approaches and collaborative, context-specific policies that are specific to the areas where they are being implemented.
The publication features a wealth of case studies from the Pacific Rim, enabling a comparative lens and a comprehensive scope to examine innovative policy capacity. The rich cases from the Asia Pacific region support cities in overcoming their need for research and evidence-based actions as highlighted in another report: “The Future of Asian & Pacific Cities published by UN ESCAP and UN-Habitat.”
Contributions to the book were made by 128 scholars based in the USA, Philippines, New Zealand, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan, China, South Korea, Israel, Hong Kong, Canada, Thailand, Belgium, Indonesia, India, and Singapore.
“This handbook is very much needed, given that much of the scholarly output on sustainable development to date has been developed in Europe and focuses on settings external to the fastest growing areas of the world, such as the coastal regions of the Asia Pacific,” said Dr. Christopher Tremewan, Secretary General of APRU.
“This book appeals to scholars, researchers, and students in such disciplines or fields as landscape architecture, architecture, planning, public policy, law, urban studies, geography, environmental science, and area studies,” he added.
The APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program was established in 2016, hosted by the University of Oregon, and supported by academic experts from 17 APRU member universities. This strong interconnection allows the SCL to draw on the strengths of differences across the region, using different viewpoints to solve urban and sustainability challenges that transcend city and country boundaries in the Pacific Rim.
The development of the handbook’s content was supported by the annual SCL conferences in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The conferences facilitated collaboration among contributors and helped maintain the momentum to keep the work on track. The safeguarding of momentum has been extremely important, given that much of the book’s content-development period took place after the pandemic had started.
Multiple meetings of the SCL steering committee helped shape the handbook’s scope and supported the important activities that have ensured its quality.
Leaders of the SCL Working groups were invited and engaged to invite contributors and circulate the call. Some chapters emerged from applied local design workshops with students and some were refined by the SCL-led online workshops that prepared participants for the online conference hosted after the pandemic had started.
The SCL Sydney conference in 2019 introduced and foregrounded the significant role of indigenous communities in elevating multi-generational and deeply place-based knowledge and working to increase advocacy and representation among historically marginalized stakeholders.
Edited by Yizhao Yang of the University of Oregon, and Anne Taufen of the University of Washington, the handbook targets policymakers and public professionals who require a focused, yet complex understanding of the issues involved in climate action; elected leaders and local officials who are often striving to make connections among the relevant issues and identify opportunities for strategic collaboration; and regional stakeholders who want to see their challenges and successes represented in the studies and analysis that help inform policy decisions.
The handbook offers rich teaching materials for classes focusing on sustainable cities and landscapes in fields of urban planning, landscape architecture, and public administration.
It bridges academic and policy communities by illustrating the potential for professional development that is scientifically based, integrated across disciplines, and practical for implementation.
“The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is a significant reference volume appealing to readers across the academic and practitioner spectrum. We are delighted to have collaborated with APRU on the publication of this important project” said Grace Harrison, Routledge Editor for Environment, Sustainability & Product Design.
“The book’s editors and section editors have meticulously curated contributions from an international range of researchers investigating key issues facing regions and cities in the Pacific Rim,” she added.
The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is available for pre-order and will ship after March 9, 2022.
Please see details here.
Contacts
Jack Ng, Director, Communications, APRU
[email protected]
February 24, 2022
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APRU on The Jakarta Post: A Mounting Battle that Starts at Home
Original post on The Jakarta Post
Both at home and abroad, plastic waste is a mounting problem that is not going to disappear on its own. The United Nations estimates that 8 million tons of plastic is dumped into the ocean worldwide each year, with Indonesia contributing upward of 600,000 tons of marine plastic pollution according to the Indonesian Institute of Sciences. These levels are reported to make Indonesia the second largest marine plastic polluter after China.
If this continues unchecked, the problem will only continue getting worse, especially during a pandemic where we rely on single-use plastic items such as takeaway cutlery and essential personal protective equipment gear like masks and gloves.
There is no doubt the pandemic places huge pressure on waste infrastructure. According to UNEP, medical waste in the form of disposed COVID-19 tests and IV bags in Jakarta has risen by a staggering 500 percent, far outstripping the capacity to incinerate or sterilize it as required by law.
Other Asian cities have reported similar spikes in plastic waste. While the Indonesian government has stated goals to triple the nation’s capacity to collect plastic waste by 2030, local leaders can – and must – take initiative to battle this growing crisis on the municipal level now.
As highlighted by key members of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Sustainable Waste Management Program including program director Yong Sik Ok of Korea University and Tsinghua University’s Xiaonan Wang, closing the plastic loop rests urgently on the collaboration of governments, researchers and industries toward intelligent design.
So how do we begin on the local level? Knowledge sharing is an essential way forward and there are different lessons that can be learned from our neighboring peers. Through the Asia Pacific Mayor’s Academy organized by 6 collaborators including APRU and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP), leaders from different cities across the region came together to discuss urban challenges and share solutions that may be applicable to different scenarios. The stories of a plethora of cities rebounding during unprecedented times sheds light on emerging possibilities to rebuild.
Looking toward the Philippines in Ormoc city, multi-stakeholder engagement from different levels of government and the private sector along with NGOs and the public was a key to alleviating the city’s significant waste management issues. The implementation of a more integrated solid waste management system and single-use plastic products regulations ordinance was supplemented with complementary measures such as projects aimed at tackling marine waste to support healthy oceans.
Besides launching new programs and engaging stakeholders, Ormoc has also emphasized smart green technology while looking out for new financing mechanisms that can supply the capital needed to fund the city’s burgeoning sustainability programs.
Not only is this positively impacting the plastic waste problem, the multifaceted approach is driving a holistic Resilient and Green Recovery Plan focused on realizing a circular economy. This not only creates better livelihoods and standards of living for locals today with a cleaner and more efficient city, the new green infrastructure is seen as a way to help safeguard the city moving forward and secure its longevity.
With clearly articulated objectives by the Ormoc mayor’s office, different parties across a range of industries can better understand how to progress their businesses while moving cohesively toward common goals that better society.
An example of how industries have been forced to innovate in the wake of COVID-19 while tackling the rising plastic issue can be found in Koh Tao, Thailand. As tourism declined drastically during the pandemic, the island’s dive boats and tour operators lost the lifeblood of their businesses. To assist people seeking work, Koh Tao was able to secure funding that put people from the tourism and transport industries cleaning up the island.
In addition to cleaning up marine waste while giving people an income during the height of the pandemic, the program also provided life skills with financial literacy training from company sponsors. This temporary measure is just one solid example of how a cleverly designed initiative can fulfill a variety of needs during a time of need.
But while it’s important to tackle immediate problems (such as unemployment), it is also essential to focus on not just restoring the status quo, but doing so in a forward looking manner. Koh Tao leveraged the forced absence of tourists as an overdue opportunity to explore how best to implement a “Smart Island” sustainable tourism model.
By factoring environmental impact more prominently into their operations, Koh Tao is forging a path that better manages natural resources and protects biodiversity while providing economic opportunities and stability to its citizens. For an economy that heavily depends on tourism, there was tremendous wherewithal and leadership needed to evaluate how to keep families afloat while also rebooting and rebuilding the economy with a more resilient and sustainable model.
With Indonesia taking strides to address plastic waste with ambitious measures, it’s clear that there must be great participation and education across all levels of society and a wave of innovative solutions.
There are reasons for optimism. It’s been reported that the Environment and Forestry Ministry has recently pushed producers to upcycle and repurpose waste raw material from trash banks into useful items. Such actions can go a long way towards realizing better waste management in a greener circular economy.
October 18, 2021
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Ideas from the interface between habitats
More collaborative approaches are emerging to prevent the loss of biodiversity.
Original post in Nature.
Among today’s environmental challenges, the accelerating loss of biodiversity is a critical issue, threatening human survival, speakers at a conference in Seoul, South Korea have warned. Now is the time, they said, for all stakeholders to be united in seeking solutions for restoring biodiversity, so humans can coexist with other species.
The 2021 P4G Seoul Summit Green Future Week Session on Biodiversity, jointly organized by South Korea’s Ministry of Environment and the National Institute of Biological Resources (NIBR), was held online on 27 May 2021. ‘Hope for the Future, Biodiversity Restoration,’ was aimed at deepening biodiversity understanding and raising awareness of behaviour change. While some presenters made the link between biodiversity loss and the increasing emergence of infectious diseases such as COVID-19, others painted a picture of a brighter future by introducing successful examples of biodiversity restoration.
There were many worrying facts and figures. For example, according to Dolors Armenteras, a geographer and biodiversity conservation professor at the National University of Colombia, in the Amazon, where 50% of the Earth’s tropical forests are located, more than 1.1 million square kilometres of land has been cleared since 1985. Such loss means the planet is losing its capacity to regulate atmospheric gas ratios which disrupts the water cycle, causing temperature rises, more flooding, droughts and associated natural disasters. “All these are a very problematic vicious cycle,” said Armenteras.
In a keynote speech, Ban Ki-moon, a former United Nations secretary-general, said: “In spite of enhanced actions on climate change, little progress has been made on biological diversity.” He pointed out that “COVID-19 is a clear sign of what humanity could face as a result of biodiversity loss and ecological destruction.” In his view, the world urgently needs to come up with nature-based solutions, addressing climate change and biodiversity degradation in an integrated manner.
Nature-based solutions is a concept created and developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a global environment and policy network. It includes “actions to protect, sustainably manage and restore natural and modified ecosystems that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, to provide human wellbeing and biodiversity benefits.” Yoon Jongsoo, president of IUCN National Committee of South Korea, said nature-based solutions are not yet reflected in many government policies because of the lack of political motivation. “We need to continue to urge our political leaders to incorporate a biodiversity agenda as well as a climate-change agenda in all major national policies in all sectors,” he said.
The NIBR of the Ministry of Environment of South Korea has been supporting national biodiversity conservation programmes since its establishment in 2007, and taking the lead in promoting the sustainable use of biodiversity in collaboration with industry, academia and other stakeholders at home and abroad. In order to make nature-based solutions policy, Bae Yeon Jae, president of the NIBR, emphasized the importance of raising the public’s awareness of the value of biodiversity.
In several video messages, talks and two sets of discussions, distinguished researchers, representatives of international organizations and top policymakers shared their insights on efforts to reach UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Gretchen C. Daily, an expert in policy, finance, and management of natural resources at Stanford University, introduced InVEST, a free, open-source software, developed with more than 1,000 scientists, to guide the investment in, and conservation of, Earth’s natural capital. It has led to successful funding agreements in Colombia, for example, between downstream and upstream users of drinking water. “We need much more leadership from the financial sector,” she said.
Meanwhile, as Nature co-hosted the second part of the session, Magdalena Skipper, its editor-in-chief, spoke of the importance of science to tackle global crises. “Perhaps more than ever before, now is the time for science to be transparent for the knowledge to be shared equitably so that all may benefit, but also importantly all who have contributed receive appropriate credit,” she said.
Zoonoses
Given the global pandemic, much attention was paid to emergent infectious diseases. Choe Jae-chun, a biologist at Ewha Womans University, introduced a recent report that showed climate change has driven tropical bat species to move into southern China where SARS-CoV-2 may have arisen. He also said human encroachment into wild habitats is creating more opportunity for viruses and bacteria to move into humans and domestic animals. “We will probably go through this kind of pandemic again and again,” he said, unless humans and domestic animals reduce their numbers tremendously or increase the area of protected forests or ecosystems, to enable animal species to live undisturbed.
Choe’s argument was backed by Kate Jones, an ecologist at University College London, who outlined the leap pathogens make from animals to humans. Jones and colleagues reviewed a large number of studies across the world, and found that humans are “changing the ecosystem of species which have a higher probability of hosting and possibly transmitting pathogens into human populations”.
A whole systems approach is needed because environmental changes act on every single part of the ecosystem, Jones says. “Managing the ecosystem creates the solutions to our societal problems.”
September 27, 2021
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APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation Tackling Climate Change Head-On
In time for the upcoming COP26 meetings, 120 dedicated APRU students from across the Asia Pacific region and close on 40 expert speakers and facilitators from within and outside the APRU network contributed to and concluded the first APRU Climate Change Simulation.
The 3-session is a role-playing exercise in which students formed multi-country, multi-disciplinary teams to slip intothe roles of delegates to the UN Climate Change Negotiations.
The APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation uses materials from Climate Interactive and the EN-ROADS simulation model developed by MIT. Live sessions and breakout room-discussions were supplemented with keynote presentations by experts from the IMF, adidas, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, short lectures from key experts across the network and other materials developed and curated by the APRU expert team. On the long list of intriguing topics were indigenous knowledge, planetary health, public health, coastal habitats, deforestation, clean energy, trading and offsets, as well as diplomacy and negotiation skills.
APRU envisions the event to be the first of many activities to develop a network of committed citizens who tackle climate change head-on.
“The opportunity to work across different disciplines, places and perspectives as part of this negotiation simulation wasa rare chance for students to learn about the complexities of developing solutions to urgent global challenges, the largest of which is climate change,” said Kathryn Bowen, Deputy Director of Melbourne Climate Future, University of Melbourne.
Kristie Ebi, Professor at the Center for Health and the Global Environment, University of Washington, also one of the sixteen participating APRU experts actively facilitating the negotiations and discussions, added that “the APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation represented a call to taking collective action against global warming.”
The APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation was co-organized by the APRU Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Program housed at the University of Oregon and the APRU Global Health Program housed at the University of Southern California. External partners include Adidas, Rebalance Earth, Smart Energy Connect-CLP, Tuvalu Mo Te Atua, UN Habitat and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.
The participating students gave their thumbs up. For instance, Annette Benger, who studies Masters of Environment at Melbourne University, shared that the event has taken her understanding to the next level.
“In my lectures on Sustainability and Behaviour Change, we are discussing the role of selfishness and altruism in human nature,” Benger said.
“It is so easy to see so much selfishness, until you come across something like this, and we are all planning to keep in touch in our WhatsApp group,” she added.
The APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation also impressed its facilitators, with Tze Kwan, Research Associate, Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions, National University of Singapore, labelling the event “super”successful.
“I am honoured to be part of this and to have had the opportunity to share my interests with the participants,” Kwan said.
“This event was such a valuable learning opportunity, making me hope more students will get to attend and be inspired to act in face of climate change,” she added.
The APRU Partner Universities involved in the Student Global Climate Change Simulation are Monash University, Nanyang Technological University, Peking University, Tecnológico de Monterrey, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, The University of Auckland, The University of Melbourne, Tohoku University, Universidad San Francisco De Quito, Universiti Malaya, and University of Washington.
Find out a featured article from University of Southern California, here.
Find out a post-activity report from University of Oregon here.
Read students’ feedback from a CUHK article here.
September 16, 2021
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APRU on SCMP: Banning Plastic Cutlery Is Only One Part of Hong Kong’s Sustainability Challenge
Hong Kong can look to other cities to find better ways to manage plastic and other waste, use the lull in visitors to explore more sustainable forms of tourism and invest in workforce training for a more circular economy
Original post on SCMP
The public consultation in Hong Kong on the scheme to regulate disposable plastic tableware has sparked debate among green groups clamouring for faster action and more stringent measures.
The scheme comes as sustainability demands our attention more than ever. Everyone can see how pollution has worsened during the pandemic as plastic waste plagues Hong Kong in ever more concerning amounts.
Many other places are waging similar battles, as waste management systems across Asia-Pacific cities are overwhelmed with lockdowns and quarantines, forcing people to rely on deliveries and takeaways. Our reliance on plastic may be ingrained but we all know it’s a ticking time bomb that needs defusing.
While this environmental cost looms large, the immediate concerns of many have understandably been focused on rebuilding post pandemic, with key industries such as tourism, aviation, hospitality and more upended.
There is hope that we can secure Hong Kong’s future if we start tackling the problems today. The plastic cutlery scheme represents an important step forward – even if it may not go far enough, we need the positive momentum to build on. We need our local leaders to fix community issues to rebuild a more resilient city after Covid-19.
How do we chart the best way forward? Inspiration from our peers may help. At the Asia-Pacific Mayors Academy, organised by the Association of Pacific Rim Universities and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), among others, I saw different mayors share their best practices.
While each city faces unique circumstances, sustainable development can be adapted to local challenges as common threads hold true.
For example, for Ormoc city in the Philippines, collaboration between the national and local government, private partners, NGOs and the public became a key to unlocking its holistic approach to battling waste issues.
From building a more integrated solid waste management system and instituting a single-use plastic products ordinance, to healthy ocean projects that reduce marine waste, Ormoc engaged different stakeholders and used smart, green technologies and different financing mechanisms.
These measures feed back into Ormoc’s Resilient and Green Recovery Plan to build a circular economy to uplift citizens and reduce vulnerabilities to crises.
Some might feel Hong Kong needs to do more to clarify its sustainable development plan and how all the moving parts, such as the latest scheme, feed into it. Only with clear, measurable goals and a well-thought-out, multi-stakeholder engagement strategy can the city better educate people on how to effectively take part.
While plastic waste during Covid-19 has been a massive issue, there are instances where the challenge was turned into an opportunity. For Koh Tao in Thailand, the pandemic reduced the popular dive destination’s daily visitors by over 90 per cent, leaving many struggling to find work.
To help, the island secured funding to pay out-of-work tour boat operators and taxi drivers to clear waste from the beaches and waters.
Not only did the community benefit from a cleaner environment and a source of income during challenging times, the programme also trained participants in financial literacy, courtesy of corporate sponsors.
Now, Koh Tao is working on a “smart island” sustainable tourism model that would better manage its natural resources and biodiversity, economic stability and safety.
Hong Kong is experiencing a pandemic-induced tourism lull. Is there a better way for us to operate once tourists return in numbers? Can we better use this time to invest in retooling people who are struggling?
There is untapped potential for businesses and the workforce to thrive in a more circular economy– we just need to relentlessly foster the right capabilities and skill sets.
Every city needs a cohesive vision as well as coordination and buy-in across different levels of society. We need to be on the same page about our collective problems and be engaged in debate over ways to address them.
Prevention is better than cure. We need pragmatic, forward-looking solutions. The last thing we want is to burden future generations with our half-solved (or unsolved) mess.
August 31, 2021
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APRU on Associated Press: APRU partners with United Nations ESCAP on The Asia Pacific Mayors Academy to Empower Mayors as Regional Leaders for Sustainability with Training Tailored to Unique Urban Challenges for a More Resilient Future
Original post in Associated Press.
Co-organised with UN-Habitat, UCLG ASPAC, UNU-IAS, and IGES, the Academy helps regional city mayors to lead inclusive and sustainable future cities development and navigate challenging times in light of COVID-19
Held from November 2020 through May 2021, the second cohort of The Asia Pacific Mayors Academy recently concluded with a final module that saw 16 mayors participate from Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. For this capstone sixth module, the Academy focused on exploring future pathways to financing sustainable urban projects.
Organised by six collaborating partners, The Asia Pacific Mayors Academy was launched in 2019 by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and United Cities and Local Governments Asia-Pacific (UCLG ASPAC) in cooperation with the United Nations University, Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) and APRU (the Association of Pacific Rim Universities).
Under the expertise of a faculty including regional experts from the APRU Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Program, the Academy engages newly elected or appointed city mayors in Asia-Pacific to increase their understanding and application of sustainable urban development tools, resources and technical solutions. Together, this multi-stakeholder network of local leaders explores scenarios with specific challenges as well as relevant case studies to facilitate plans for sustainable solutions in their communities. For example, in the sixth module, the Academy discussed leveraging urban land value, co-creating private sector innovation, and promoting polluter-pay solutions to create long-term value for citizens, businesses, and the environment.
Chris Tremewan, Secretary General of APRU, “APRU university experts work with city leaders and multilateral organizations to strengthen sustainable city development and to develop concrete plans for urban solutions. We are honoured to be one of the partners of the Academy. These specialised training sessions and knowledge exchanges have been invaluable during COVID-19 as we collectively respond to the crisis. We need to do everything we can to put cities on the path to recovery.”
Stefanos Fotiou, Director, Environment and Development Division, ESCAP, “By drawing on multi-disciplinary members from across the Academy’s network, this unique and inclusive initiative supports mayors and the critical role their cities can play in realising the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Paris Climate Agreement. Starting local is essential to sustainability progress across the region, and it begins by addressing urban problems with smart sustainable solutions.”
The Academy offers a robust curriculum including modules on Cities 2030 – Designing, Planning and Managing Sustainable Urban Development and COVID-19 Response and Recovery in hopes to see strengthened regional cooperation and mayors applying learnings to generate positive outcomes in Asia Pacific cities.
To find out more: https://www.asiapacificmayorsacademy.org/call-for-expressions-of-interest
June 24, 2021
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ASPIRE Science Prize Spotlights Diverse Knowledge for a Sustainable Future
Issued by the APEC Policy Partnership on Science, Technology and Innovation
The 2021 APEC Science Prize for Innovation, Research and Education or known as ASPIRE is now accepting nominations. The prize features influential work by young scientists from among the 21 APEC member economies.
New Zealand, the host economy for APEC 2021, has chosen ‘Diverse Knowledge for a Sustainable Future’ for this year’s theme. It is aimed at focusing on researcher insights from Indigenous and ethnic minority cultures and communities to help inform new frontiers in science, technology and innovation.
“In an era of rapid global change, a robust science and research enterprise is critical to advance disruptive and transformative technologies, providing the evidence base to make informed decisions that balance risks and rewards, and advance our understanding and ability to address global challenges like COVID-19,” said Daniel Dufour, Chair of the APEC Policy Partnership on Science, Technology, and Innovation, which administers the annual prize.
“Global issues, such as pandemics and climate change, have further highlighted the importance of leveraging diverse knowledge and perspectives to bolster science, technology and innovation, and create better solutions for a greener, safer and more inclusive future.”
“The selected theme explores interactions between traditional and contemporary approaches to knowledge and science, as well as applications such as better management of natural resources, healthcare and agricultural systems,” said Professor Juliet Gerrard, Chief Science Advisor for New Zealand. “This will open up much needed new holistic and inclusive approaches for economies to meet the challenges of the future.”
In its 11th year, the ASPIRE prize promoted scientific success by providing opportunity for the young and bright scientists among the APEC member economies to showcase their hard work, specialty and global contribution.
Each APEC economy may nominate one individual to represent them in this year’s competition. The nominee must be from the region and under 40 years of age. The impact of their work will be judged on their excellence in research and cross-border collaboration with peers from other APEC economies. Relevant academic disciplines include biology, chemistry, environmental science and physics, among others.
The winning entry will receive a cash prize of USD25,000 by Wiley and Elsevier, distinguished publishers of scholarly scientific knowledge. The prize will be awarded at a virtual ceremony hosted by New Zealand in August 2021.
“The future of science depends on a robust and diverse set of minds drawn from all corners of society,” said Youngsuk “Y.S.” Chi, Chairman of Elsevier. “These young scientists are paving the way for a brighter and more sustainable future. Not only are they broadening the borders of science, research and healthcare with their discoveries, but they are giving Indigenous and ethnic minority cultures the recognition they deserve.”
“Over this past year, we have learned that diverse and inclusive knowledge systems lead to more effective and agile global research,” said Judy Verses, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Wiley Research. “We look forward to spotlighting the amazing work of young scientists across the region—they are our future.”
For information on the previous year’s ASPIRE prize, please visit this link.
For application information and questions, please visit this link.
For further details, please contact:
Masyitha Baziad +65 9751 2146 at [email protected]
Michael Chapnick +65 9647 4847 at [email protected]
March 23, 2021
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APRU on Nature: A Private University with a Global Outlook
Original post in Nature.
Korea University is a prestigious academic institution with a focus on creativity, innovation, and excellence that is helping to drive positive change.
A global centre of excellence for international collaboration and multi-disciplinary research, Korea University has been ranked the top private university in Asia for the fourth consecutive year, on the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) world rankings list.
State-of-the-art research facilities and a track record of innovative research from world-renowned experts (seven of whom are 2019 Global Highly Cited Researchers) have placed Korea University in the top global 100 universities assessed by QS.
Research conducted at the university is helping to tackle some of the major challenges facing the world, such as climate change, environmental degradation, and chronic disease.
The United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development contains 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that address issues such as inequality, climate change, and economic growth. Achieving these goals in a sustainable manner for both people and the planet poses significant technical and engineering obstacles.
Realizing the Sustainable Development Goals
Korea University’s global research director, Yong Sik Ok, leader of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Sustainable Waste Management programme, is chairing a conference series on engineering sustainable development, organized by The American Institute of Chemical Engineers, together with William Mitch (the programme co-leader), a professor at Stanford University. Academic researchers, industrial practitioners, and government departments, will gather to discuss the development of integrated solutions to realize the UN’s 17 SDGs.
Participants will also work on an efficient sustainable management agenda for biological waste and remediation of soil, water and air in the local context.
“We will deliberate on state-of-the-art treatment technologies, advanced management strategies, and political issues pertaining to recycling and recovery of waste. It’s a timely opportunity for knowledge exchange among professionals from all over the world, and will actively feed into ongoing policy discourse,” says Ok.
In 2019, Ok was the first South Korean to be selected as a highly cited researcher (HCR) in the field of environment and ecology by the Web of Science’s HCR index, with 60 highly cited papers and hot papers. He is working at the vanguard of global efforts to develop sustainable waste management strategies and technologies to address the rising crisis in electronic and plastic waste, and pollution of soil and air with particulate matter.
“Waste management on the land and the seas has become a major national, regional, and global challenge,” says Ok. “We need to develop better strategies for more effectively managing our waste. We must also seek to derive value from the waste we generate through, for example, conversion to energy and value-added products such as biochar.”
By bringing together international experts, policymakers, and local communities, Ok believes the APRU Sustainable Waste Management programme and the conference series on engineering sustainable development will “play a vital role in helping to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.” Ok will host the first Nature conference among South Korean universities in Seoul in 2021 on the theme of waste management and valorization for a sustainable future.
Clean energy
In efforts to tackle climate change, scientists from Korea University are also creating the next generation of solar cells and helping the world transition to more efficient and cleaner renewable energy technologies.
“Imagine a solar panel as thin as a piece of paper that can be used on windows, vehicles, and other irregularly shaped surfaces,” says Jun Hong Noh, associate professor in Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering at Korea University.
Noh’s research has been focussed on developing solar cells made from halides with a perovskite crystalline structure. Perovskite solar cells are lighter, cheaper, and easier to produce than conventional silicon-based cells, and can be made into flexible devices. “The main focus of my work has been to improve the efficiency of perovskite solar cells, as this is the most important factor in the commercialization of solar cell technologies,” explains Noh.
Rapid increases in their efficiency compared with conventional single-crystal silicon solar cells over the past several years has led to increased interest and investment in research into perovskite-based solar cell technologies.
Noh’s pioneering work has led to the development of halide perovskite solar cells, which have higher energy conversion efficiencies than conventional thin-film-type cells made from semiconductor materials, such as cadmium telluride. The superior performance of Noh’s halide perovskite cells comes from their unique combination of structural and optoelectronic properties, which include a high degree of crystalline order, a long carrier lifetime, and a high optical absorption coefficient.
In 2020, Noh and his team achieved a halide perovskite solar cell with a certified efficiency of 25.2%. The results are yet to be published, but it is the most recent world record as measured by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). “Thin-film halide perovskite solar cells have unique characteristics that make them ideal for photovoltaics,” explains Noh. “So, our next goal is to exploit these characteristics to create solar cells with efficiencies of more than 30%, which is close to the theoretical limit for a single-junction solar cell.”
Improving human health
Atrial fibrillation is one of the most common heart rhythm disorders, and can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure, and other ailments. With tens of millions suffering from the condition globally, it is a major public health concern.
Young-Hoon Kim, vice president, professor and executive director of the Cardiovascular Center at Korea University Anam Hospital, has spent more than 30 years researching atrial fibrillation and his pioneering work has led to improved diagnoses and treatments.
“People suffering from heart conditions like atrial fibrillation often require very dramatic and timely interventions,” says Kim. “Therefore, it is paramount that clinicians make the right choices when prescribing treatments or therapies.”
In 1988, Kim performed Korea’s first catheter ablation on a patient with atrial fibrillation. Since then, he has carried out more than 10,000 procedures on people suffering from complex tachyarrhythmias, a type of atrial fibrillation characterized by a very rapid irregular heartbeat.
“The successful treatment of atrial fibrillation is dependent on how well we understand the mechanisms of the heart and how it behaves in people with the condition,” explains Kim. “Our work has led to a better understanding of the underlying causes of the condition, and on the development of more effective catheter ablation techniques for patients with persistent atrial fibrillation.”
Kim is now collaborating with leading experts from around the world to develop a powerful new 3D imaging technique that could lead to better outcomes, particularly for patients suffering from complex atrial fibrillation.
“With 3D mapping, we can provide clinicians with a tool that more precisely maps the intricate functions of the heart and could lead to better treatments and greatly improved patient outcomes,” says Kim.
Spectro-imaging breakthroughs
Researchers at Korea University are also developing state-of-the-art spectroscopy and imaging techniques like coherent multidimensional spectroscopy and deep-tissue imaging, which have allowed scientists to capture real-time images of the high-speed chemical reactions that occur at the molecular level, leading to breakthroughs in chemistry, molecular biology, and the material sciences.
“Because of the advantages of coherent multidimensional spectroscopy over conventional spectroscopic techniques, research in the field is expanding rapidly,” explains Minhaeng Cho, a professor in the Department of Chemistry, and director of the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics (CMSD) at Korea University.
Cho and his team recently used the technology to create ‘molecular motion pictures’ that capture the ultrafast chemical and biological changes that could take place in living cells, which can often last for only a few quadrillionths (one millionth of one billionth) of a second.
“The motion pictures allow us to better understand the chemical changes and conformational transitions that biomolecules undergo in cells, providing deeper insights into the functioning of living cells,” explains Cho.
In addition, one of their teams, led by Wonshik Choi, an associate director of CMSD, has developed a deep-tissue imaging technique that has led to the creation of the world’s highest depth-of-field optical microscope.
The microspectroscopy combining imaging and time-resolved spectroscopy techniques use ultrafast pulses of laser light to observe the chemical and biochemical reactions in biological systems, which can help in the early diagnoses of diseases, including cancer.
He is now working on developing the next generation of spectro-imaging technologies that bring together high-resolution imaging and ultrasensitive detection techniques used in spectroscopy and microscopy. He aims to address a key question for molecular biologists: how does the behaviour of water and biological molecules contained in human cells differ to the properties of bulk water?
Water plays a critical role in many cellular processes, such as protein folding and enzymatic reactions. Thus understanding the structure and dynamics of intracellular water is very important.
“To what extent these properties differ from those of bulk water is still a hotly debated subject,” says Cho. “My goal is to combine both multidimensional spectroscopy with microscopy to develop an imaging technique that can help us better understand the properties and dynamics of water and a single protein in different regions of living cells, such as the nucleus, cytoplasm or mitochondria.”
March 19, 2021
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APRU Sustainable Waste Management Program Records Fruitful 2020 And Enters 2021 With Many Events
APRU’s Sustainable Waste Management (SWM) Program managed to elevate sustainability as a key focus area for research and teaching despite the pandemic-related distortions in 2020 and successfully started into the current year with a virtual three-session SWM Winter School in January-February.
Led by Korea University, the APRU SWM program is designed to play a vital role in helping to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with many of its works focusing on microplastics, heavy metal-related soil pollution and biowaste.
The research outcome and studies of the program were featured on Science and Nature, the top two world leading publications, as comments, reviews and letters respectively. The latest Nature article, for example, highlighted the APRU SWM group under the lead of program director Professor Yong Sik Ok currently developing a new technology that can collect plastics from soils and convert them into smart carbon-based materials for a variety of industrial applications, such as air purification filters.
The SWM Winter School focused on wastewater treatment and recycling, biochar for sustainable development, and plastics and sustainability. It attracted students from Europe, Asia and North America.
“Unsustainable waste management is a pressing environmental and public health problem, and there is growing concern over how to mitigate pollution, achieve sustainable plastic management, and ultimately achieve the SDGs,” said Ok.
“I am very grateful that APRU’s SWM program facilitated the Winter School, as its valuable panel discussions helped identifying key problems and provide solutions,” he added.
The Winter School followed the APRU SWM co-hosted events Engineering Sustainable Development 2020; The 2nd Australian Circular Economy Conference (ACEC); and the Nature Forum: Plastics and Sustainability, all of which held in December. The APRU SWM also organized the 20th International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment (ICHMET) 2020 and the Sustainable Waste Management Workshop: Microplastics in the Environment in October and January 2020 respectively.
Next in line are the Nature Forum at 2021 P4G Seoul Summit (May 30-31); the 3rd Sustainable Waste Management Conference co-hosted by AIChE-APRU (August 4-6); and the Nature Conference: Waste Management and Valorization for a Sustainable Future (October 26-28).
Moving forward, the SWM program aims to develop joint-virtual events and credit-bearing courses.
The program also decided to strengthen its partnership with Nature this year. Two articles, A global approach to a greener future and A private university with a global outlook, just published at nature portfolio showcasing the SWM program and its lead, Korea University.
Find out more about the Program here.
February 25, 2021
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COVID-19’s unsustainable waste management
COVID-19’s Unsustainable Waste Management
Siming You, Christian Sonne, Yong Sik Ok
Science 26 Jun 2020:
Vol. 368, Issue 6498, pp. 1438
DOI: 10.1126/science.abc7778
Download the pdf file here.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to an abrupt collapse of waste management chains. Safely managing medical and domestic waste is crucial to successfully containing the disease. Mismanagement can also lead to increased environmental pollution. All countries facing excess waste should evaluate their management systems to incorporate disaster preparedness and resilience.
Wuhan, the COVID-19 epicenter of China, experienced a massive increase of medical waste from between 40 and 50 tons/day before the outbreak to about 247 tons on 1 March. Cities such as Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Hanoi, and Bangkok experienced similar increases, producing 154 to 280 tons more medical waste per day than before the pandemic. Meanwhile, the widespread lockdown has caused a substantial increase in domestic waste in the United Kingdom. These large amounts of waste require collection and recycling, both of which are compromised as a result of manpower shortages and efforts to enforce infection control measures.
Disrupted services have led to waste mismanagement increases of 300% in some rural UK communities. With fewer options available, traditional waste management practices such as landfills and incineration are replacing more sustainable measures such as recycling, with adverse effects on the environment. The U.K. Environment Agency further threatens the environment by allowing temporary storage of waste and incineration ash at sites that have not been granted a permit, as is usually required.
To address the overflow of medical waste, the United Kingdom and other affected countries should install mobile treatment systems near hospitals and health care centers. The design and analysis of sustainable waste management chains, including logistics, recycling, and treatment technologies and policies, should be prioritized. To reduce the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of waste management, the whole system must be considered, including waste generation, collection, transport, recycling and treatment, recovered resource use, and disposal of remains. Protecting waste management chains will help achieve sustainable cities and communities as outlined in the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
June 30, 2020
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